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The Commission presented in early February the long-awaited and controversial delegated act on the classification of nuclear energy and natural gas as sustainable forms of energy. Specifically, in the context of policies to address the impacts of climate change, the Commission conditionally includes natural gas and nuclear energy as activities that can be considered "green investments."
The adoption of a Commission delegated act can only be blocked by a qualified majority in the Council (at least 20 Member States representing at least 65% of the EU population) or an absolute majority in the Parliament.
The aim of the taxonomy is to direct private investment towards activities that are necessary to achieve climate neutrality, without determining whether or not a particular technology should be part of the energy mix (i.e. energy production sources).
On the occasion of the debate that opened, CNA spoke to the Commissioner for the Environment, a representative of the Cyprus Federation of Environmental Organizations (CECO) and an environmental scientist asking for their views.
It appears that the main concern of the Government is the proper management of risks in terms of public health and safety and environmental protection.
It appears that the main concern of the Government is the proper management of risks in terms of public health and safety and environmental protection. The position of the IPPC is clear: Nuclear power is not an "alternative". Dr Kostas Papastavros, a PhD in environmental sciences with decades of experience in the Environment Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, from which he retired a few years ago, explains that the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is associated with a high risk of causing a mass casualty accident.
Environment Commissioner: special attention to safety issues
Environment Commissioner Cleo Vassiliou, in a statement to CNA, said we have to be particularly attentive to issues related to radiation levels, waste management of nuclear power plants, the issue of replacement of nuclear reactors and the whole range of mechanism and safety. "There is an incomplete database recorded in terms of the management of individual issues, which is what is required for public health, safety and certainly the impact on nature," he said.
Regarding the presence of the nuclear power plant in Akkouyu, he stressed that we are definitely concerned and worried and to the extent possible we are exerting the necessary pressure to ensure at least its proper operation through the European Safety Control Mechanism. Indicatively, to a similar question by Loukas Fourlas to the European Parliament, the answer given states, among other things, that the evaluation by ENSERG - The European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group - will be completed within 2022 and a new question on the content of the evaluation is already being pursued in cooperation with the MEP's office", the Commissioner said.
Ms Vassiliou stressed that the issue of energy production from other forms of renewable energy sources (RES) is something that has been of concern to us over time. She said that we must also invest more in research on this issue, adding that each region and each country must identify the ways, places and means available for the implementation of renewable energy sources, which must serve the benefits of energy production with the least possible environmental impact, as well as public health and safety indicators. Under no circumstances should the effort become an end in itself, while removing other important environmental , absolutely essential claims."
The Commissioner made it clear that food security, i.e. the fact that as much agricultural land supply as possible must be prioritised and left unaffected, the biodiversity strategy, our attention to supporting the Landscape Convention, must remain high on the agenda.
He explained that Cyprus, as a particularly limited geographical area, is called upon to reconcile many parallel environmental needs and therefore the targeting should be on the exploitation of multiple and smaller renewable energy systems.
"For example, helping farmers to exploit livestock waste for energy production is in my view a priority, as is the exploitation of household waste for the same purpose," Vassiliou said.
She added that in this context we should always stress that the operation of RES should be the final stage in recording the needs, and the first step is to limit the use of existing resources, recycling and reuse, and then record our real needs from RES as well.
"This does not mean that we should waste resources uncontrollably with the certainty that we are creating energy from RES. No human intervention in the environment is considered a panacea," he said.
With regard to criticism of the Government's handling of the use of RES, he said that the Government, based on the tools available to it, is in a constant effort to modernize and adapt infrastructure and administrative tools for the integration of RES in our energy balance.
"Admittedly, there was a delay and incorrect handling in the strategic planning of the State 10 years ago, locking the energy strategy in specific chapters of RES, issues that are identified, modified and with a dynamic attitude is an effort to correct, "he said.
Vassiliou said that the opening of the market, and the possibility of storing the energy produced are particularly important and recalled that last January the Council of Ministers approved three important bills submitted by the Minister of Energy, which relate to encouraging the use of RES, reducing fuel emissions and the operation of the Renewable Energy Sources and Energy Saving Fund (RES).
She stressed that through the bills, a contribution is sought to the objectives within the framework of the broader green policy and Cyprus' transition to the Green Economy, and at the same time, important sponsorship projects are announced, through several departments and other ministries.
"No one is saying that we have reached the target, but we should be aware that we will always have much more to do in such a dynamic and ever-changing area as energy," the Commissioner told CNA.
Nuclear power industry support is a disastrous decision, OPOCE's position
OPOCE President Petros Pasias told CNA that the renaissance of nuclear power is not an alternative in the context of climate protection and the shift to renewables and at the same time public funding for the construction and operation of new nuclear power plants in the EU is not a green investment, on the contrary, strengthening the nuclear industry is a potentially disastrous decision for the future of humanity and the planet.
'As he noted, the nuclear industry produces millions of tonnes of nuclear waste every year, which, because it is radioactive, is extremely dangerous for the environment, human health and public safety. It takes thousands of years to become essentially inert and, regardless of how it is stored, treated and disposed of, it has the ability to penetrate and accumulate in soil, water, air and any living organism.
In addition, a nuclear power plant has a limited lifetime, averaging about 25 years. After decommissioning, he pointed out, the industrial field becomes a graveyard of radioactivity, while the industrial plants themselves can only be likened to a slow-fire nuclear bomb, ready to explode at any moment.
"The establishment and safeguarding of 'permissible safety limits on radioactive radiation' by the International Atomic Energy Agency is not based on a strictly scientific rationale, but instead offers practical solutions for managing the operation of the nuclear industry," he said. Pasias spoke of a lack of scientific evidence on the consequences of exposure to low doses of radiation, adding that the long-term nature of the incurable diseases associated with it makes exposing people and communities to any "limits" of radioactive radiation an irresponsible and immoral act.
He referred to the major nuclear accidents (e.g. Windscale UK 1957, Three Mile Island USA 1979, Mayak and Chernobyl former USSR/Russia 1957 and 1986, Fukushima Japan 2011), which he said are just the tip of the iceberg in the history of nuclear power accidents. He stressed that the claim that modern advanced technology eliminates the risk of nuclear accidents is unsubstantiated.
"The risk of nuclear power increases even more if we take into account the potential risks of accidents caused by natural phenomena (e.g.e.g. causing a strong earthquake and tsunami) and man-made activities , e.g. armed conflict, acts of terrorism, criminal sabotage, human error," he said.
The IPCC considers that due to economic, military and political interests, the nuclear industry is notorious for its "secretive operation" and consequently the concealment of important information concerning the construction and operation of its facilities, the transport and processing of its fuel, the management and disposal of its waste, as well as the actual causes of major accidents and their long-term catastrophic consequences.
The IPCC President noted that nuclear power generation is by no means a "peaceful activity" and that the nuclear industry remains at the top of the pyramid of both the global military-industrial complex and international terrorist activities.
He said that nuclear power plants are the main centres for developing the relevant know-how and providing the raw materials for the manufacture of nuclear weapons, either through the uranium enrichment process or the reprocessing of mixed oxide fuels.
The OPCW also stresses that nuclear power generation relies on astronomical amounts of private investment and public funding.
Mr. Pasias said that only if the total cost of nuclear energy production (design, construction, operation, maintenance and dismantling of nuclear reactors, mining, processing and transport of nuclear fuel, storage, treatment and disposal of nuclear waste, mitigation of the adverse effects of the emission of radioactive radiation on the human body and the environment) is calculated, the mythical amounts required become apparent.
"The result of the above equation makes nuclear power perhaps the most expensive technology for generating electricity. It relies on the acquisition and development of the relevant know-how, equipment and raw materials. This implies further economic and technological dependence of the poorer developing countries on the richer developed countries."
He also stressed that nuclear energy should not be confused with renewables, whose raw materials are inexhaustible/renewable (e.g. (e.g. solar, wind, geothermal energy) and that on the contrary, the available uranium deposits, i.e. the exclusive raw material for nuclear energy production, are limited and exhaustible, as are the reserves of fossil fuels (coal/lignite, oil and gas).
With regard to the claim that nuclear energy does not contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, as fossil fuels do, and can therefore make a substantial contribution to climate protection, Mr. Pasias said that it cannot be argued and that despite the fact that nuclear energy does not directly emit greenhouse gas emissions, if one takes into account the fact that the nuclear production chain is the most complex and longest energy production process, it seems to be responsible for the indirect production of significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions. The IPCC believes that it is possible to secure the energy we need and effectively protect the planet's climate, with much greater security and much less money, by investing in energy saving measures and renewable energy sources, rather than in nuclear power generation."
Mr. Pasias also stressed that the IPPC has always opposed and continues to oppose the construction and operation of a nuclear power plant at Akkuyu and joins the environmental/ecological and pacifist/anti-nuclear movements in the region, which demand an end to the production and use of nuclear energy in the EU, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East.
Asked about Cyprus' energy plans for natural gas, he said that the reasons for including natural gas in the long-term strategy for low greenhouse gas emission development and especially the contribution it is expected to make to the country's energy balance, in the context of the gradual decoupling from other more polluting sources of conventional fossil fuels, such as crude oil (fuel oil), are clear.
"However, in the context of reassessing the feasibility and viability of the hydrocarbon exploitation programme, serious consideration should be given to the long-term goal of renewable electricity generation and a smooth transition to the climate neutrality target by 2050. Therefore, all options should be considered, weighing all environmental, social and economic criteria, in the context of the upgraded objectives for the transition to a climate-neutral continent and a low-carbon economy, with a 30-year horizon (2021-2050)," he said.
Ultimately, the climate-neutral future can be based on other forms of renewable energy, we ask the IPCC President.
He believes that as far as the electricity sector is concerned, it is important to immediately strengthen the target for 100% renewable energy production by 2050 and to electrify the vast majority of the energy and transport sectors. He said that the full electrification of the private transport sector should be promoted by 2050. Pasias believes that Cyprus is already behind the targets and obligations of the previous decade and although there is a good strategy from the Energy Authority, the necessary resources are not available to finance the necessary renovation actions of public sector buildings, which should now be boosted (mandatory renovation of 3% instead of 1.5% of public sector buildings every year to boost the wave of building renovation).
The IPPC also considers that it is also necessary to increase energy efficiency after 2030 by 1% per year in all energy sectors except power generation, as already proposed in the framework of the Cyprus Long Term Strategy for Low Emission Growth.
It states that the target for the use of RES in the power sector is among the least ambitious among the 27 and considers that any actions taken under the sectoral policies of the European Green Deal on climate and energy, as well as the proposed EU legislative package ("Fit For 55"), should not conflict with other sectoral policies, in particular those concerning the conservation and restoration of nature and biodiversity.
The use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is associated with a high risk of a mass casualty accident, says Dr Kostas Papastavros
Dr Kostas Papastavros, who worked for years in the Environment Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, believes that the word "green investment" may have in recent years implied investment in pro-environmental projects, but in the case of power generation, "green" in particular implies reduced or no carbon emissions.
He explains that in any form of energy production a number of other factors are taken into account, such as the risk of destruction of an important environmental habitat/habitat, a settlement, a farm, an accidental mass destruction, etc.
"The use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, e.g. Electricity generation as we have known it for decades using the fission reactor method may not be associated with carbon emissions and is therefore "green" in this sense, but it is associated with a high risk of causing a mass casualty accident, with the examples of the 1957 Kistim-Russia accident, the 1979 Three Mile Island-USA accident, the 1986 Chernobyl accident, the 1999 Tokaimura-Japan accident and the 2011 Fukushima accident," it says.
Dr Papastavros points out that the literature also refers to many other smaller-scale accidents.
He adds that, in his opinion, the Commission's position on considering nuclear energy as "green" stems both from the observed energy crisis of our time, which has become entangled with economic, geopolitical and geostrategic interests, and from the powerful nuclear lobby of the manufacturers.
He also notes that the Akkuyu plant is a potential serious danger for Cyprus.
With regard to Cyprus' energy plans, he believes that now, especially in our country, the use of natural gas and renewable energy sources is a priority. He explains that the technological civilization as it has developed since World War II is characterized on the one hand as extremely energy-intensive and on the other hand as being based entirely on fossil fuels (oil and related) with trillions in investments and infrastructure.
Dr. Papastavros explains that climate neutrality, as currently understood by the international scientific community, will be achieved with zero carbon emissions, i.e. zero fossil fuel use.
"To achieve this, it has been acknowledged that we need a transition phase of several decades, but also with the parallel use of natural gas, which by its nature is the most environmentally friendly in the family of fossil fuels, and also the use of renewable energy sources. So I would say that nuclear power in the form of using a fusion reactor, rather than the fission reactor used today, will be discussed as an option after a decade or so, when we expect this technology to be perfected."
Dr. Papastavros notes that de facto, there is no single exclusive source of energy to achieve climate neutrality and adds that even the panacea to humanity's energy paucity is not yet the use of only renewables.
"The solution package is unfortunately more complex. In particular, in order to reach the goal of zero emissions, a combined and joint development of new "cleaner" technologies and products using renewable energy sources (solar thermal, wind, photovoltaic, wave, hydroelectric, geothermal, biomass, waste, etc.), in particular the development of energy storage systems and maximum energy savings is required. Indicatively, it is said that energy saving is the cleanest energy," he notes.
Regarding the criticisms against the Government on the issue of renewable energy and the fact that we end up paying fines for pollutants in the EU instead of having proper policies for renewable energy, Dr. Papastavros says that the easiest thing is to criticize, noting however that no one doubts that we could have done better.
He notes that there is a bureaucracy that extends from defining zones of potential for RES development (a study is now being carried out and preliminary indications are that the available area is relatively very small) to the legally required preparation and assessment of the necessary environmental studies and issuance of planning permission.
"Social acceptance is required, there is a need for multi-year measurements of the wind potential to enable the investor to prepare his business plan, financial measures, participation of local authorities, the community, etc. etc. In addition, there is no system for storing energy from RES, no substantial studies have been carried out on the use of RES for the production of desalinated water, etc. We agree that much more needs to be done."
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